


Green Groweth the Holli

by ryma36rpm (katzenjammerd)



Category: Smallville
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-30
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:35:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21621583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katzenjammerd/pseuds/ryma36rpm
Summary: She arrives with one tiny rucksack, a cheap pink plastic affair that doesn’t bode well for what's inside. She's dressed as if a rainbow attacked her. It would be almost cute, were it not for the sheer hideousness of the outfit and the runny nose, which she repeatedly wipes with a grubby sleeve.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	Green Groweth the Holli

Of course, Lex knows on an intellectual level that none of this is the social worker's fault. Still, he gets a certain amount of comfort from her jumping when he slams down the glass.

The call came through on Wednesday. Lucas found dead in an apartment of a friend who now cannot be traced. Police were treating it as suspicious. Then again, every event connected with Lucas should be treated with suspicion, Lex thinks meanly, glancing up at one Sarah Cook. Not often social workers come to talk to him. She's dressed in off the rack, with low, sensible court shoes and frizzy hair. Nothing there to tempt him, nothing at all. Quiet monotone, a unique mix of concern and professional distance.

He fades out of her conversation, recalling the first phone call "…the embassy would normally fly the body home, but someone would need to accompany the child… "

Lucas, that sly bastard. Lex always knew he was out to get him.

Lex chickened out at the last moment and sent his p.a. instead, claiming he needed to sort things out. Which is why he's now sitting with the lovely Ms. Cook, distracted by the ominously thick file on her lap.

"We have an idea of your brother's wishes, you can take her in, or arrange for her to be fostered with a trust fund"

Well fuck, there's a gun to my head, thinks Lex, 'here bro, care to abandon my child?'

"Where's the mother?" God, knowing Lucas, 'what's the mother?' might be more appropriate.

"She died of an overdose nearly two years ago. It's all in the file. We were called in when the child went to a neighbour, claiming she couldn't wake her mother."

He winces, feeling utterly shitty for all those nasty thoughts. Still, he doubts Lucas ever bothered much with this offspring, if all he wanted was Lex to put her into care and set up a fund.

"Your brother had in fact asked that you specifically take guardianship, rather than her grandfather. He seemed quite adamant at this."

Lucas, that sly bastard, asking Lex to save his daughter from their father. He clears his throat.

"What's she like?"

The weak smile is not encouraging. "Oh, I'm sure she'll be fine once she settles in, Mr. Luthor."

She stops smiling at Lex's glare.

* * *

He flicks through the file Sarah's given him after she leaves. It's the raw guts of the life of one Holli Luthor, formerly Dunleavy, formerly Jacobs, all sensitive names and information blanked out. Born in Edge City to two runaway teenagers, Holli was kept under social workers' eye from birth. Her mother ran away from her parents where there had been accusations of domestic abuse. Lex was only too familiar with Lucas' case history. A runaway family with no money or seeming prospects and only the promise of some kind of love to sustain them when the system failed them. Holli herself had spent time in care in Gotham.

Holli. No Greek or Roman pretensions from Lucas, then.

Lex doesn't sleep that night. He picks up the phone three times to call the Kent's, to ask them why they took in Clark, and then Ryan, and would they like to adopt another child? He'd feel better knowing she went to a safe and loving home rather than staying with him.

Holli isn't quite how he expected. She arrives with one tiny rucksack, a cheap pink plastic affair that doesn’t bode well for what's inside. She's dressed as if a rainbow attacked her. It would be almost cute, were it not for the sheer hideousness of the outfit and the runny nose, which she repeatedly wipes with a grubby sleeve.

Lex shudders.

*~*~*~*

She clings to her rucksack, like Lex might steal it any minute. He walks towards her to say 'hello', but stops when she takes a step back, edging towards the door. It occurs to him that the file never stated where she was when Lucas died. With her luck, she was probably in the apartment. He squats down, to the amusement of Sarah and Anya, his Luthorcorp executive assistant.

"Heya Holli."

Silence.

She looks around at the three of them and Lex realises how frightened she must be. She turns her attention back to him and he recognises an edge of defiance when she holds his gaze.

"Hi." It's almost a goad, the way she throws it back at him, willing him to do his worse. "Are you Lex?" This is all said a decibel above polite.

"Yeah, I'm your uncle. I'm your daddy's brother." Uncle, ugh. Lex feels weird even saying it. He runs his hand over his scalp. He is now officially Uncle Fester. "I'm going to look after you."

The look she gives him leaves him in no doubt of her relation to Lionel. It's oddly reassuring and puts him back on balance. No way is this little wildcat niece going to get the better of him.

He straightens, turning his attention to the two women.

"I'm sure she'll be fine once she settles in. Holli, I'm sure you're hungry from the flight and the trip from Metropolis, so I'll go get you something. The remote for the television is on the table, make yourself at home."

And that does the trick. It seems Holli takes what she can get. She scurries towards to entertainment centre, clambering up on the sofa with the remote in one hand and her rucksack in the other. The way to her heart is through cartoons and offers of food. Lex can handle that. He goes to the kitchen himself, rather than phoning down. It gives him a chance to escape from her, to think. What the fuck is he doing? It was different with Ryan, he was a thirteen-year-old comic fanboy waiting till it was safe to go to the Kent's. She's with him for the next fourteen years, at least. He's starting to really see the appeal of boarding schools. He feels guilty at this, but comforts himself that she won't be tortured there like he was. She looks normal, pretty even. He wonders what's the earliest age they accept, and then wonders what he's supposed to do with her till then. Fuck, childcare. He rests his forehead against the cold metal of the refrigerator. These past few days just seemed to be soundtracked by a litany of 'fuck's.

"Lex?"

Of course there's always respite in a storm, and Clark's voice is full of warmth and humanity and compassion. There's a hint of worry, too and it makes Lex look up and smile, to wipe away any traces of it.

"I just came with the delivery. And y'know, to give our sympathies about your brother." His head is ducked down, and he's worrying the cuff of his sleeve. Lex remembers how Clark didn't like Lucas, and senses that hint of guilt in Clark's tone. It's oddly reassuring.

"It's ok, I haven't really had time to process - hey, you want to meet my niece?"

Clark looks up, surprised. It's a good look on him, but Lex refuses to think anymore about that. Food. For Child.

Clark's weighted down with goodies as Lex writes a note for the staff and outlines his new role as guardian, leaving out all the 'fucking no' parts. 'Dinner - something suitable for a child', he writes. He feels the warmth of Clark leaning over, trying to read the note, and can barely concentrate on shaping the letters. And when exactly did he start feeling like a heroine in a Romance Novel. Oh yeah, right, when he moved to Smallville, was nearly murdered by two wives, didn't have much sex, and fell in love with the farmer's son. He supposes these events might have an effect.

"Y'know," Clark's voice is low and silky, tinged with warm humour, "Can I call you Daddy Warbucks now?"

Of course, he's not so much in love that he can't smack Clark in the head. Clark will know what to do with the girl. Everybody likes Clark.

-*-*-*-

Days pass, and Lex feels himself into some sort of routine. Holli trails after him mostly, from study to kitchen. None of this Lex takes as a compliment. It’s obvious from her sullen glance that this is not a case of hero worship. Rather, she doesn’t trust him enough to let him out of her sight. She’ll let the housekeeper bath her and dress alone, but he will always hear the shuffle of feet minutes later as she comes to check on where he is. At night, when he sends her to bed, she looks at him suspiciously, as if he’ll do a runner in the night. If he thinks about it, he feels pity for a child so young and so mistrustful of the world. But mostly he’s just irritated having her under his feet all day. He feels like the victim, being stalked by a child, who manages to have constantly grubby hands. On especially bad days, he mentally refers to her as Damien.

She’s loitering around his desk in this fashion on a Wednesday when Martha Kent visits, ostensibly with the produce delivery and bill. He knows this is a cover because the first thing she does is envelop him in a motherly embrace, whispering, “I heard. How are you coping?”

It almost makes him cry with relief. He squeezes her quickly in silent thanks and turns to his desk to introduce her to Holli, but Holli is already by his side, staring up at Mrs Kent, one hand about to grip his pants leg, eyes big from staring at their guest.

Martha reaches down to softly pat Holli’s cheek. Where Clark and his sunny smiles failed, Mrs Kent has succeeded. Holli is enraptured, and for the first time since arriving in Smallville, plays cute. She hides behind Lex’s leg, peeking out to smile at Martha. Martha beams back, but there’s a shadow behind her expression, and Lex is suddenly painfully aware of a spectre of a memory of a much-wanted pregnancy.

“What an adorable little lady, Lex.” coos Martha.

Well, that’s the first time his charge has ever been called anything in the vicinity of praise. Lex feels inordinately proud for no good reason.

“I hope you’re going to visit us sometime on the farm.” Martha continues, “Wouldn’t you like to see a farm, with cows and fields?

Holli tightens her sticky grip on Lex’s pants. Lex understands these pants are a now a lost cause. He catches her shaking her head and gesturing Martha closer to say something.

“Why, of course Lex will be with you, honey!” Martha glances up from their tete a tete to smile at him.

‘Yes, of course,’ thinks Lex, ‘I will never escape this child.’ And then glances down at the child smiling back at Mrs Kent and feels guilty and ashamed of himself.

He sends Holli off on some goose chase to get coffee or cookies, and turns to Mrs Kent.

“I have no idea what I’m doing, Mrs Kent,” he admits, preparing himself to beg for parental advice, “and I really need to start going into work soon. I don’t know what to do with her.”

“She’s doing that whole follow you around thing? Yeah, Clark did that at first. She just needs you, Lex. You’re probably the only person she trusts after a very unsettled life.”

Trust. Ha fucking ha. Holli’s judgement must be as bad as Lex’s. Lex doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry.


End file.
